The sun transmits energy to the earth in the form of visual light and thermal radiation. This solar energy has numerous potential uses and effects on human civilization. During particular earth-sun orientations, the sun's transmitted visual light reflects off of physical objects, thereby enabling individuals to see, navigate, and differentiate among physical objects. The thermal radiation transmitted by the sun affects the relative temperature at a specific location depending on the earth's axial location with respect to the sun. In an effort to conserve natural resources and optimize energy usage, it is desirable to harness this solar energy for various practical applications. Therefore, these forms of transmitted solar energy are converted via various technologies into other forms of applicable energy, including electrical and hydrothermal. These solar technologies may be categorized as both active solar and passive solar. Active solar technologies incorporate the use of external energy to generate/convert energy from the sun. An example of an active solar device would include a mechanical tracking module coupled to a photovoltaic cell. Whereas, passive solar technology systems utilize the natural thermal transfer properties of the solar energy. Passive solar devices include climate control and water heating systems. Unfortunately, existing active and passive solar technologies fail to provide a system that efficiently utilizes both the visual and thermal properties of solar energy.
People generally prefer residential living environments in which they are able to control aspects of the interior climate. For example, most residential and commercial buildings include some form of heating or cooling device so as to adjust the temperature. These devices may be coupled to a thermostat so as to create a system that automatically turns on one of these devices when it is necessary to adjust the climate to a preferred level. Unfortunately, thermostats generally control the climate based on a single temperature input and therefore fail to consider other forms of data which may be useful in efficiently controlling an environment. In addition, thermostats are generally limited to on/off functionality, meaning that when a specific condition is met, they are capable of turning on or off a device. Thermostat-based systems do not incorporate any form of solar-related data, which may have a substantial effect on the climate of a particular region.
Therefore, there is a need in the industry for an environmental control system that efficiently utilizes multiple forms of environmental data, including solar-related data.